The Department appeals from the Department of Motor Vehicle
Hearings (DMVH) hearing officer’s order which rescinded the Department’s
suspension of Walter O. Manning’s driving privileges based on his arrest for
Driving Under the Influence (DUI). The hearing officer’s order stated: “There
being no evidence corroborating what Implied Consent Warning was read to the
Respondent, I conclude as a matter of law that the Petitioner has failed to
meet its burden of proof.” See order at 6. In the Department’s
Statement of the Issues on Appeal in its brief, the third issue is set out as
“Did the AHO err when he determined that the officer’s uncontroverted testimony
had to be independently corroborated by other evidence?” However, the
Department completely failed to address this issue in its brief, nor did it cite
any legal authority in support of its argument. Respondent in his brief argues
that this issue must be considered abandoned. I agree.

Based on these two principles of law, the
hearing officer’s above quoted conclusion is the law of the case, having been
abandoned by the Department on appeal. As such, IT IS THEREFORE
ORDERED that that the Final Order and Decision of the DMVH is AFFIRMED.